ASU Holland Symposium to Feature TV Critic

October 05, 2012

Nationally known film and theater critic Jeffrey Lyons will be the featured speaker for Angelo State University’s 2012 E. James Holland University Symposium on American Values Monday, Oct. 22, in the Houston Harte University Center, 1910 Rosemont Drive.

Lyons’ presentation, “Thinking Twice Before Knocking Someone Else’s Work: My 42 Years As A Movie Critic,” will be covered in two sessions at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. in the University Center’s C.J. Davidson Conference Center as he traces his career and the impact critics have on the movie industry. The evening session will also feature a public question-and-answer session that will be moderated by Dr. John Wegner, ASU professor of English and director of the ASU Center for Innovation in Teaching and Research.

Informal receptions will be held following each session at 3:15 p.m. and 9 p.m. in the University Center Tower Lobby. Both the presentations and receptions are open free to the public.

Prior to his presentations on Oct. 22, Lyons will be guest of honor at a barbeque on Sunday, Oct. 21, at 5:30 p.m. in the LeGrand Alumni and Visitors Center, 1620 University Ave. Advance reservations are required and can be made by calling Dr. Trey Smith at 325-486-5441. Lyons will also visit with ASU classes and be the special guest at an invitation-only ASU Honors Program luncheon on Oct. 22.

Lyons is one of America’s best-known film critics, having reviewed more than 15,000 movies since 1970 and having interviewed most major movie and Broadway stars. His opinions have been published in books, magazines and newspapers and broadcast on radio and television programs. He has been a film critic for CBS radio and co-host of the PBS series “Sneak Previews.” He has also hosted several programs, including his weekly syndicated “The Lyons Den” production broadcast on 200 Mutual Radio stations and in Canada.

Lyons has written or co-authored seven books, including Jeffery Lyons’ 101 Great Movies for Kids, Curveballs and Screwballs, and Out of Leftfield: Over 1,134 Newly Discovered Amazing Baseball Records, Connections, Coincidences and More, which he collaborated on with his brother. Most recently, he wrote Stories My Father Told Me: Notes From “The Lyons Den,” a book about his father’s iconic Broadway column.

Also film critic for Video Review and Rock Magazines, Lyons has also served on the Metropolitan Desk of the New York Times. In addition, he has appeared in several major motion pictures, including “The French Connection” and “Death Trap,” and on the TV series “Wise Guys.”

The Holland Symposium was established in 1984 by then-College of Liberal and Fine Arts Dean E. James Holland. When Holland retired in 2003, the board of regents named the symposium in his honor. In its 28 years, the symposium has brought more than 60 nationally prominent figures to the ASU campus to spur thought and debate on issues relevant to American society. The ASU Office of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs sponsors the symposium.